Inserting system

ABSTRACT

An inserting system comprises first and second sheetlike item transport guides forming a first sheetlike item transport path for transporting first sheetlike items. Third and fourth sheetlike item transport guides form a second sheetlike item transport path for transporting second sheetlike items. At least a portion of the first and second sheetlike item transport guides and a portion of the third and fourth sheetlike item transport guides are separate. A plate has a first side and an opposite second side, said first side being the portion of the second sheetlike item transport guide and said second side being the portion of the third sheetlike item transport guide. The fourth sheetlike item transport guide is mounted so as to be movable with respect to the third sheetlike item transport guide, and the plate is mounted so as to be movable with respect to the first sheetlike item transport guide.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an inserting system according to the preambleof claim 1.

Such an inserting system is known from US-A1-2006/0220307. In thisUnited States patent application an insertion system for insertingmaterials into envelopes to form mail pieces of a first type and mailpieces of a second type is described. This known insertion systemcomprises a folding subsystem for folding documents, said foldingsubsystem having a first pair of folding rollers forming a first foldingnip there between and a second pair of folding rollers forming a secondfolding nip there between. In a path of travel of such materials from afeed station to an inserting position a diverter is present which can beactivated either to send the materials through the folding subsystem orto bypass the folding subsystem.

In practice, a system as mentioned above is typically used in mailroomswhere large numbers of documents or sets of documents are each to beinserted in an envelope in order to send these documents to addressees.

However, also in organizations that send relatively small numbers ofdocuments, and where documents to be sent are for a considerable partprocessed by hand also when being prepared prior to insertion,mechanized insertion should lead to considerable saving of labor. To beconsidered here are, for instance, medical practices, workshops and clubadministrations, as well as service companies taking care of sendingsmaller mailings for third parties. In addition, in some organizationsthere is a desire to have several smaller inserting systems rather thanone or a few larger ones. Accordingly, there is a need for insertingsystems that are attractive due to smaller size than existing systemsand involving relatively low cost, still being able to handle a widevariety of applications and having an attractive operation speed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a solution for enabling asimpler and more compact structure of an inserting system.

This object is achieved according to the invention by providing aninserting system according to claim 1. Since the fourth sheetlike itemtransport guide is mounted in the inserting system so as to be movablewith respect to the third sheetlike item transport guide, and the plateis mounted in the inserting system so as to be movable with respect tothe first sheetlike item transport guide, two separate sheetlike itempaths can be arranged close together, thus facilitating a compactmachine; e.g. a document path and an enclosure path or an envelope pathand a document path can be close to each other.

In an embodiment of an inserting system according to the invention thefourth sheetlike item transport guide is mounted in the inserting systemso as to be rotatable around a first rotation axis. Preferably the plateis mounted in the inserting system so as to be rotatable around a secondrotation axis. In this way both sheetlike item paths can be easilyaccessed even if the sheetlike item paths are close together. Thissimplifies e.g. jam recovery.

In an advantageous embodiment of an inserting system according to theinvention the fourth sheetlike item transport guide is mounted in theinserting system so as to be rotatable around a first rotation axis in afirst rotation direction away from the third sheetlike item transportguide, and the plate is mounted in the inserting system so as to berotatable around a second rotation axis in a second rotation directionaway from the first sheetlike item transport guide. Said first and saidsecond direction could be identical, wherein preferably the first andsecond rotation axis are arranged close to each other near an upper sideof the inserting system. Alternatively said first and said secondrotation directions could be opposite, wherein preferably the firstrotation axis is arranged near an upper side of the inserting system andthe second rotation axis is arranged near a lower side of the insertingsystem. In this way a very simple construction is obtained which allowsthe inserting system to be opened by rotation around the first rotationaxis in e.g. upward direction so that the second sheetlike item path iseasily accessible, and also the plate can be easily rotated away, e.g.downward, giving room to access the first sheetlike item path.Furthermore the inside of the inserting system can in this way beaccessed from all sides.

In a further embodiment of an inserting system according to theinvention the first sheetlike item transport guide comprises drivingmeans, such as one or more rollers, belts, strings, grippers ortransport fingers and the portion of the second sheetlike item transportguide comprises non-driving means which can be brought into (preferablyclose) contact with the driving means in the first sheetlike itemtransport guide, and preferably the fourth sheetlike item transportguide comprises driving means, and the portion of the third sheetlikeitem transport guide comprises non-driving means which can be broughtinto (preferably close) contact with the driving means in the fourthsheetlike item transport guide. In this way no driving parts are presenton the plate which can e.g. be rotated away, thus making it possible touse a simpler and cheaper driving chain.

In order to provide a compact construction of the inserting system whichprovides additional functions to the inserting system the plate cancomprise a sensor for sheetlike item detection and/or a scanner forscanning a sheetlike item and/or a camera for capturing images of asheetlike item transported through a transport path. It is preferredthat the sensor and/or scanner can be directed to either one of thetransport paths, so that only a limited number of sensors/scanners haveto be used to perform the desired operations, thus limiting the costs ofthe inserting system. This can be achieved by movably mounting thesensor and/or scanner, wherein the movement of the sensor and/or scannercan be done through control of a control unit which is part of theinserting system or by an operator or technician. In another embodimenta mirror construction can be used to direct the sensor and/or scanner toeither one of the transport paths. The direction in which the mirrorconstruction directs the sensor and/or scanner can be adjusted by acontrol unit included in the inserting system or by an operator ortechnician.

A multifunctional inserting system is provided when the plate comprisesat least one cross-over path for transporting a sheetlike item from oneof the sheetlike item transport paths to the other one of the sheetlikeitem transport paths, wherein the inserting system comprises a diverteroperable to selectively divert sheetlike items to be transported from atransport path to the cross-over path. Optionally the diverter may bearranged on the plate, however arrangement on a stationary side of theinserting machine is preferred. The plate may comprise two or moreparts, preferably divided by the at least one cross-over path. The partsmay be rotated together around the same axis, but also individuallyaround separate axes to access the paths shielded by the plate.

Further embodiments disclosed in the dependent claims contribute toproviding a simpler and more compact structure of an inserter system.

Further objects, aspects, effects and details of the invention aredescribed in the following detailed description of a number of exemplaryembodiments, with reference to the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic side elevation, partly in cross-section, of aninserting system according to the invention,

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view in perspective of the inserting systemof FIG. 1 in which the inserting system is partly opened to access adocument transport path, and

FIG. 3 is a schematic side view in perspective of the inserting systemof FIGS. 1 and 2 in which the inserting system is further opened toaccess an envelope and/or enclosure transport path.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In FIG. 1 a schematic side elevation, partly in cross-section, of aninserting system 1 is shown. In this embodiment the inserting system 1has a housing 6 in which three document feeding stations 2, 3, 4 forfeeding documents, an envelope feeding station 5 for feeding envelopes,an enclosure feeding station 7 for feeding enclosures, a folding station8, an inserting station 9 and a tray 10 for receiving completed mailpieces 11 can be distinguished.

Each document feeding station 2, 3, 4 has a document holder 12, 13, 14for holding a stack 15, 16, 17 of documents and a separating system 18,19, for separating and transporting a document or document set from thestack 15, 16, 17 and transporting it further into the inserting system1. In an embodiment, the feeding station 4 is dedicated to daily mail,in which case the whole stack (being one document set) is transported atonce from the feeding station to a document transport path.

The envelope feeding station 5 and the enclosure feeding station 7 mayboth function as a feeder for sheetlike items, such as envelopes,enclosures, or documents. Hence it is possible to have two separateenvelope feeders. In an alternative embodiment it is also possible tohave e.g. two enclosure feeding stations, where the envelope feedingstation is located elsewhere in the system (not shown in the drawings).

The envelope feeding station 5 has an envelope holder 21 for holding astack 22 of envelopes and a separating system 23 for separating andtransporting a single envelope from the stack 22 and transporting itfurther into the inserting system 1.

The enclosure feeding station 7 has an enclosure holder 24 for holding astack 25 of enclosures and a separating system 26 for separating andtransporting a single enclosure from the stack 25 and transporting itfurther into the inserting system 1.

The folding station 8 has a first pair of folding rollers 27, 28 forminga first folding nip there between and a second pair of folding rollers28, 29 forming a second folding nip there between. In this embodimentone of the folding rollers of the first pair of folding rollers and oneof the folding rollers of the second pair of folding rollers are formedby one and the same folding roller 28, but it is also possible that inan alternative embodiment the first and second pair of folding rollersdo not comprise a common folding roller.

The inserting station 9 comprises an envelope holder 30 for holding anenvelope 32 in an inserting position 31, and a flap hold-open element 33for holding open a flap 34 of the envelope 32 held in the envelopeholder 30. Please note that the envelope holder and the flap hold-openelement are not depicted in detail, since these elements are known perse. For example, but not exclusively, the flap hold-open element andenvelope holder as described in EP-A1-2.123.474 can be used in theinventive inserting system. In the situation where the flap 34 of theenvelope 32 is held open by the flap hold-open element 33 a documentfolded in the folding station 8 can be inserted into the envelope 32. Inorder to realize this, the inserting station 9 is connected to thefolding station 8 in a manner known per se.

From the document feeding station 3 a document transport path 35 fortransporting documents from the stack 16 of documents extends throughthe folding station 8 to the inserting position 31. From the documentfeeding station 2 a document transport path 36 extends into the documenttransport path 35 for transporting documents from the stack 15 ofdocuments through the folding station 8 to the inserting position 31.From the document feeding station 4 a document transport path 37 extendsinto the document transport path 36 for transporting documents, or a setof documents at once (in case the daily mail function is enabled or oneof the feeding stations is dedicated to daily mail), from the stack 17of documents through the folding station 8 to the inserting position 31.

From the envelope feeding station 5 an envelope transport path 38 fortransporting an envelope from the stack 22 of envelopes extends throughthe second folding nip formed between the second pair of folding rollers28, 29 to the inserting position 31.

From the enclosure feeding station 7 an enclosure transport path 39enters into the envelope transport path 38 for transporting an enclosurefrom the stack 25 of enclosures through the second folding nip formedbetween the second pair of folding rollers 28, 29 to the insertingposition 31. In this embodiment the enclosure transport path coincidesat least for a part with the envelope transport path. However, in analternative embodiment the enclosure transport path may be completelyseparate from the envelope transport path.

In the embodiment shown the enclosure transport path 38, 39 comprises adiverter 40. This diverter 40 defines a first enclosure transport pathpart a between the enclosure feeding station 7 and the diverter 40. Inthe position of the diverter 40 indicated by solid lines a secondenclosure transport path part through which an enclosure can betransported is defined by a cross-over path 41 which runs into thedocument transport path 35. Thus the diverted enclosure passes throughthe first and the second folding nip, and is finally transported to theinserting position 31. In this position of the diverter 40 the enclosuretransport path is formed by the first enclosure transport path part a,the cross-over path 41 and a (final) part of the document transport path35. A stop 42 may be present to collate enclosures. Such a stop or othermeans for collating enclosures is known per se, and by way ofnon-limiting example reference is made to EP-A-2 107 021.

In the position of the diverter 40′ indicated by dotted lines anenclosure being transported through the first enclosure transport pathpart a, continues through the envelope transport path 38 portion betweenthe diverter 40′ and the inserting position 31. This portion of theenvelope transport path 38 between the diverter 40′ and insertingposition 31 forms a third transport path part for an enclosure bypassingthe first folding nip and only passing through the second folding nip.

The diverter 40 is operable to selectively divert enclosures to betransported from the enclosure feeding station 7 to the insertingposition 31 by the first enclosure transport path part a and the secondenclosure transport path part (41 and final part of 35) or the firstenclosure transport path part a and the third enclosure transport pathpart (portion of envelope transport path 38 between diverter 40 andinserting position 31).

Thus e.g. in case of a letter fold (also called a C-fold) or a Z-fold ofthe main documents and a relatively short enclosure or business replyenvelope (BRE) fitting in the main envelope without being folded, thediverter 40′ is placed in the position indicated by dotted lines and theenclosure or BRE will be sent through the third enclosure transport pathpart and bypasses the first folding nip. The enclosure is then insertedinto the second fold of the documents, so that the enclosure or BRE willbe nested inside the main documents and will not fall out of theenvelope easily when the recipient opens the letter. In other cases thediverter 40 can be placed in the position indicated by the solid linesso that the enclosure or BRE passes through the first folding nip aswell as the second folding nip (which folding stations form substationsof the inserting system). This is mostly the case when a single fold isapplied, in order to have the enclosure or BRE nested inside the maindocuments, but also applies to enclosures that need to be folded inorder to fit into the envelope.

As can be seen in FIG. 1 the envelope transport path 38 can be dividedinto a first envelope transport path part, which is arranged between theenvelope feeding station 5 and the diverter 40 and a second envelopetransport path part, which is arranged between the diverter 40 and theinserting position 31. To avoid too many sheetlike item paths and to beable to form a compact inserting system the paths are arranged such thata portion of the first envelope transport path part coincides with aportion of the first enclosure transport path part, and such that alarge portion of the second envelope transport path part and thirdenclosure transport path part coincide.

Seen in transport direction from a feeding station to the insertingposition 31 the envelope transport path 38 and the document transportpath 35 upstream of the second folding nip 28, 29 are separate so thatdocuments and envelopes can be transported independently of each otherand for example simultaneously thus increasing the output rate of theinserting system.

As can be seen in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-3 the inserting system1 further comprises a plate 43 having a first side 45 and an oppositesecond side 44.

In the embodiment shown the envelope and enclosure transport path 38 ispartly formed between a first sheetlike item transport guide formed bythe first side 45 of the plate 43 and a second sheetlike item transportguide formed by a guide plate 46 and a number of transport rollers ofwhich only two 47 and 47′ are indicated in FIG. 1. The transport rollers47, 47′ in the first sheetlike item transport guide are driving rollerswhich can be brought into contact with non-driving rollers 56, 56′ (FIG.3) arranged on the plate 43

Furthermore in the embodiment shown the document transport path 35 ispartly formed by the second side 44 of the plate 43 (forming a thirdsheetlike item transport guide) and a fourth sheetlike item transportguide formed by a guide plate 48 and a number of transport rollers ofwhich only two 49 and 49′ are indicated in FIG. 1. By this constructionit is clear that, seen in transport direction from a feeding station toa substation (e.g. formed by a collating station, a folding station oran insert station), at least a portion of the first and second sheetlikeitem transport guides 46, 45 and a portion of the third and fourthsheetlike item transport guides 44, 48 upstream of the substation areseparate. The rollers 49, 49′ in the fourth sheetlike item transportguide are driving rollers which can be brought into contact withnon-driving rollers and 57, 57′ (FIG. 2) respectively, arranged on theplate 43.

Please note that although in this embodiment transport rollers areshown, the invention is not limited to rollers, but also encompassesother transport means such as belts, strings, a gripper mechanism or anyother known transport mechanism or a combination of any other knowntransport means. The non-driving transport means (i.e. the passivetransport means) in the plate will rotate when they are in contact withthe driving transport means. However, it is not necessary that the platecomprises non-driving transport means. It is also possible to providethe plate with a smooth guiding surface, optionally provided with holeson the position of the driving transport means on the opposite side ofthe sheetlike item path. Please note that the driving means in the firstsheetlike item transport guide and the fourth sheetlike item transportguide may be different from another, such as e.g. a driving belt in thefirst sheetlike item transport guide and driving rollers in the fourthsheetlike item transport guide. In addition the non-driving means in thesecond and third sheetlike item transport guides may be different fromanother, such as e.g. a smooth guiding surface for the second sheetlikeitem transport guide and non-driven contra rollers on the thirdsheetlike item transport guide.

Although the shown embodiment comprises guide plates 46, 48 theinvention is not limited to the use of plates as guide elements.Furthermore, although in the shown embodiment transport rollers areshown, the invention is not limited to rollers. The guide plates and thetransport rollers could also be replaced by other transport means suchas belts, strings, a gripper mechanism or any other known transportmechanism or a combination of any other known transport means. Forexample, in an alternative embodiment the number of transport rollers47, 47′ could be sufficient to provide a guide for sheetlike items to betransported, so that the guide plate could be dispensed with. Thenon-driving transport means (i.e. the passive transport means) in theplate will rotate when they are in contact with the driving transportmeans. However, it is not necessary that the plate comprises non-drivingtransport means. It is also possible to provide the plate with a smoothguiding surface, optionally provided with holes on the position of thedriving transport means on the opposite side of the sheetlike item path.In case transport rollers, belts or strings are used the rotation axisof these transport means is perpendicular to the feeding direction ofthe sheetlike items.

In the embodiment shown the fourth sheetlike item transport guide 48together with amongst other things the document feeding stations, theenvelope feeding station and part of the housing 6 are mounted in theinserting system so as to be rotatable around a first rotation axis 50,which is arranged near an upper side of the inserting system 1. As isshown in FIGS. 2 and 3 this upper part of the inserting machine can berotated upward around the rotation axis 50 as indicated by the arrow 53.This part of the inserting machine is supported on opposite sides bye.g. hydraulic or pneumatic cylinders 51, 52. By such an upward rotationthe fourth sheetlike item transport guide 48 and the third sheetlikeitem transport guide 44 are separated so that the document transportpath is made accessible e.g. for maintenance or removal of jammeddocuments.

In addition the plate 43 is mounted in the inserting system 1 so as tobe rotatable around a second rotation axis 54, which is arranged on alower machine part near a lower side of the inserting system 1. Theplate 43 can thus be rotated around the second rotation axis 54 in asecond rotation direction (arrow 55). This causes that the secondsheetlike item transport guide 45 is rotated away from the firstsheetlike item transport guide 46 so that the envelope or enclosuretransport path is made accessible, e.g. for maintenance or removal ofjammed envelopes or enclosures. For accessing the transport paths therotation directions 53, 55 can be opposite.

In an alternative embodiment not shown in the Figures, the plate 43could be mounted so as to be rotatable together with the upper machinepart when this upper machine part is rotated upward around the rotationaxis 50 as indicated by the arrow 53, so that the separation of themachine parts will take place between the first and second guides. Inorder to access the other sheetlike item path the plate 43 could then bemounted to the upper machine part so as to be rotatable around arotation axis. Furthermore, the rotation axes could be positioned atapproximately the same level of the machine. In a further alternativeembodiment the plate could be mounted to the upper or lower machine partby a rotation axis or other means, such as a parallelogram constructionor other construction forcing a rectilinear movement of the platerelative to the machine part, as long as the plate can be moved awayfrom the relative machine part to allow access to the relevant sheetlikeitem path. In addition the plate could be mounted in the insertingsystem so as to be completely removable from the upper and lower machineparts. Furthermore, the plate may be divided into two or more parts thatmay be opened together but also individually. Preferably the plate isdivided into two parts by the cross over path. The plate parts may berotated together around the same axis but may also be rotatableindividually around separate axes to access the paths shielded by theplate.

Although not indicated in the drawings the plate 43 can comprise sensorsfor sheetlike item detection and/or scanners for scanning a documenttransported through a transport path. These sensors and/or scanners canbe movably mounted so that the sensors and/or scanners can be directedto either one of the transport paths. The diverter 40 can also bearranged on the plate 43, but can alternatively be arranged in or nearthe first sheetlike item transport guide.

It will be clear that in case there are more separate transport paths inan inserting system, more than one rotatable mounted plate withoutdriving transport means separating these transport paths can be present.For example 4 parallel sheetlike item paths can be achieved using twoplates in parallel. Although in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 theholders 12, 13, 14 each hold a stack of documents, the holder 21 holds astack of envelopes, and the holder 24 holds a stack of enclosures theinvention is not limited to this embodiment. Depending on the desiredapplication and configuration the holders may interchangeably hold othersheetlike items. In addition the inventive inserting system is notlimited to the more or less vertical sheetlike item transport pathsshown in the drawings but the invention is also applicable to insertingsystems in which the sheetlike item paths are at least substantiallyhorizontal.

1. An inserting system, comprising: a first sheetlike item feedingstation for feeding first sheetlike items, a second sheetlike itemfeeding station for feeding second sheetlike items, a substation forperforming at least one action on the first sheetlike items and thesecond sheetlike items, a first sheetlike item transport guide and asecond sheetlike item transport guide forming a first sheetlike itemtransport path there between for transporting first sheetlike items fromthe first sheetlike item feeding station to the substation, a thirdsheetlike item transport guide and a fourth sheetlike item transportguide forming a second sheetlike item transport path there between fortransporting second sheetlike items from the second sheetlike itemfeeding station to the substation, wherein seen in transport directionfrom a feeding station to the substation at least a portion of the firstand second sheetlike item transport guides and a portion of the thirdand fourth sheetlike item transport guides upstream of the substationare separate, said inserting system further comprising a plate having afirst side and an opposite second side, said first side being theportion of the second sheetlike item transport guide and said secondside being the portion of the third sheetlike item transport guide,wherein the fourth sheetlike item transport guide is mounted in theinserting system so as to be movable with respect to the third sheetlikeitem transport guide, and the plate is mounted in the inserting systemso as to be movable with respect to the first sheetlike item transportguide.
 2. An inserting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fourthsheetlike item transport guide is mounted in the inserting system so asto be rotatable around a first rotation axis.
 3. An inserting system asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the plate is mounted in the inserting systemso as to be rotatable around a second rotation axis.
 4. An insertingsystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fourth sheetlike itemtransport guide is mounted in the inserting system so as to be rotatablearound a first rotation axis in a first rotation direction away from thethird sheetlike item transport guide, and the plate is mounted in theinserting system so as to be rotatable around a second rotation axis ina second rotation direction away from the first sheetlike item transportguide.
 5. An inserting system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said firstand said second direction are identical.
 6. An inserting system asclaimed in claim 5, wherein the first and second rotation axis arearranged close to each other near an upper side of the inserting system.7. An inserting system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first andsaid second rotation directions being opposite.
 8. An inserting systemas claimed in claim 7, wherein the first rotation axis is arranged nearan upper side of the inserting system and the second rotation axis isarranged near a lower side of the inserting system.
 9. An insertingsystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first sheetlike item transportguide comprises driving means, and the portion of the second sheetlikeitem transport guide comprises non-driving means which can be broughtinto close contact with the driving means in the first sheetlike itemtransport guide.
 10. An inserting system as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe fourth sheetlike item transport guide comprises driving means, andthe portion of the third sheetlike item transport guide comprisesnon-driving means which can be brought into contact with the drivingmeans in the fourth sheetlike item transport guide.
 11. An insertingsystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plate comprises a scanner forscanning a sheetlike item or a camera for capturing images of asheetlike item transported through a transport path.
 12. An insertingsystem as claimed in claim 11, wherein the scanner can be directed toeither one of the transport paths.
 13. An inserting system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the plate comprises at least one cross-over path fortransporting a sheetlike item from one of the sheetlike item transportpaths to the other one of the sheetlike item transport paths.
 14. Aninserting system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the inserting systemcomprises a diverter operable to selectively divert sheetlike items tobe transported from a transport path to the at least one cross-overpath.
 15. An inserting system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the platecomprises two or more parts, preferably divided by the at least onecross-over path.